Raetihi visitor centre funding undecided

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 10, Issue 474, 23 February 1993, Page 1

Raetihi visitor centre funding undecided

A decxsion on council funding for the Raetihi Information Centre has been put on hold while further study into the operation of all the Ruapehu information centres has been carried out. The centre organisers applied to the council for $9800 to help with operating costs including rent, wages, power & telephone, display equipment, stationery, advertising, travel reimbursements and fundraising expenses. But district marketing manager Bruce Rollinson told the promotions and development subcommittee in his report that "there was concern ... to the quantitative benefit of

lunding two Waimarino information centres." He said the subcommittee needed to consider the low number of visitors to the Raetihi centre, and the close proximity of the Visitor Information Network-approved Ohakune centre. Mr Rollinson told the Bulletin last week he was not against the council helping the Raetihi information service but that he believed there could be more effective ways of doing so. Mayor Garrick Workman said no decision was made at the subcommittee meeting regarding the Raetihi submission, pending the outcome of

study mto altematives. The promotions group that operates the centre was to meet tonight to discuss the issue. Recommendations on other submission? considered at the meeting were: Core council marketing $100,000 (as submitted); RSBA, $31,500 ($41,500 applied for); Promotion Taumarunui $35,000 ($40,000 applied for); Taumarunui Development Incorporated $18,100 ($18,100 applied for). An application for funding for the Mountains to Sea event would be considered as part of the core marketing budget, said Mr Workman.

Mr Workman stressed that the decisions made by the subcommittee were only recommendations to the council, who had the final say. "The council has yet to decide if it wants to grant more money to promotion and development (the total submissions exceed the

previous year s budget, which was $168,500), and if so, how it will be funded. Does it come from an increased promotion rate or from the general rate." "I don't want to go backwards on the district's promotion. We've made a very good start and I'd like to see us keep ihe ball rolling," he said.